Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Darius Miles Update Part 2

Darius Miles has officially been waived by the Memphis Grizzles. However, Darius did play 7 minutes in the first half of Memphis game last night, so that brings the number down to 8.


I would like to clarify a statement I made in the previous Darius update, previously I stated that any player can only be signed to (2) 10-day contracts before it is required to guarantee that players contract. That is false. A team is only required to sign a player to guaranteed contract for the remainder of the year only if THAT PARTICULAR team has signed a player to (2) 10-day contracts. So in theory, every team in the NBA could sign Darius to (2) 10-day contracts and he could never have a guaranteed contract. This is slightly less appealing then the scenario I previously posted, but I think it is still a long shot.


But to be honest what are we worrying about? Even if Darius goes back on our books, we will still be ok. If you add together the contracts that the Blazers are obligated to pay next season, and we assume the salary cap stays the same (usually goes up every year, but because of the recession it is expected to stay or maybe even lower a little), the Blazers will still be $25 mil under the salary cap.


There are (4) players that the Blazers must make a decision on for next season. They are:


Steve Blake ($4.0 mil)

Travis Outlaw ($3.6 mil)

Channing Frye ($12.9 mil Hold on cap space until we renounce rights to him or he signs with someone else)

Ike Diogu ($12.0 mil Hold on cap space until we renounce rights to him or he signs with someone else)


So as one can logically assume we will keep Blake and Outlaw, bringing our available free agent cash down to 17.40 mil. This is enough to sign a superstar caliber player, but to be honest, there aren’t any out there to be had this offseason. For a good breakdown of the summer 2009 free agents, check out this article by ESPN’s Chad Ford. Tell me there is one guy in there you would want to pay 17.40 mil to next year? I don’t see it.


So let’s assume Miles does come back on our books, that leaves us with 8.40 mil. That is still plenty of money to sign a quality role player. As you will notice with NBA salaries solid, veteran role players are usually in the $5-$10 mil range. So if we wanted to go that route we could.


Another scenario, is the Blazers could broker a trade for a “superstar”. With our combination of young, cheap talent, and $8.40 mil of wiggle room under the cap, pretty much any player in the NBA could fit onto our roster (financially). Granted this is a little more difficult then just signing a free agent out right, but none the less an option to consider.


Last point I would like to make is, when my man crush Pritchard took over and began making these moves, he had a plan. And that plan originally included having Darius on our books this summer. Any of you that have listened and read as much about what Pritchard says, knows that he has been circling this summer on his calendar for years. So there is no way that he is not going to have a plan for every single scenario, not to mention the time in between the end of the season (when he will know about Darius being on our books or not) and the beginning of free agency (early July).


Bottom line is I have complete faith in our management to make the best move possible with the information available. A move that in KP’s words “doesn’t sacrifice that long term for the short term”. I’ll drink to that.


-Kyle

2 comments:

  1. I am starting to have my doubts about Steve Blake being a solid starting guard. I have the same doubts arrising about Outlaw and his ability to contribute on a constant basis. Are there any considerations about getting a solid scoring veteran PG, SG or SF? I think the Blazer could gain the most from adding someone that can score on a consistant basis and has some years under his belt.

    While Blake and Outlaw are good players in their own, I feel that they are only contributing when Blake is on fire from 3point range and Outlaw is not missing his pull up J. This seems to not happen all that frequently. I feel that when their game goes south and they cant hit the 3 ball or knock down that jumper they are so detramental to the team that they should be taken off the court for the game. Steve turning the ball over constantly in key situations and Outlaw forcing wild shots. This seems to not matter all that much when Roy is on the court because he makes up for it, but over the past few games I feel the poor play of both players has shown me that they maybe arent a good fit here and we should look to aquire someone else who is more dependable when it comes to scoring.

    Sorry all for the hate mail towards the two, since they are Blazers and all, but I have just been so dissappointed in the play of Blake and Travis that I can not hold my toungue any longer. Go Blazers tonight...and I hope they both prove me wrong!!

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  2. I slightly agree with the opinion toward outlaw, but I am still a believer in blake. Blake may be playing slightly poorer as of late, but once Roy comes back, he goes back to seeing wide open looks on kick outs and being a great team facilitator. Outlaw seems to be one of those players who is real fun to root for and watch play, but less valuable when it comes to winning games. Looking at the link about who is available next year (great article to look out to see who is available) one player who im not huge on but I think may fit onto our team would be Ben Gordon. We are set at the two (Roy) four, (Aldridge) and five (Oden/Pryz), and in my oppinion even the one (Blake), the Three spot is still in limbo. With Martel being injured and Rudy coming off of the bench, I think Gordon would be an excellent player who has proven he can be extremely effective coming off of the bench. Imagine having Rudy and Gordon coming off of the bench? That would make our bench unit an offensive powerhouse (although shaky on D with Gordon and Rudy not great defenders). Another option I would love to see in Portland would be Boozer. He would give our team toughness and a legit 20 and 10 talent. Now I know that would mean either a log jam at the four spot or getting rid of Lamarcus. Just a couple of options to spend our cash, they might not be perfect, but with the free agents out their, those are the players I feel may fit our team best. Thoughts?

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